This invention relates to enclosures, consoles and housings for receiving and operating computer peripherals and more particularly to such systems which allow computer peripherals, such as hard disk drives, to be readily interchanged and used in different combinations.
With the advent of disk arrays, in which a number of hard disk drives are used together with a data processing system so as to provide high storage capacity, manufacturers early adopted the approach of mounting a number of disk drives in a single enclosure. This became possible after hard disk drives and other peripherals became available that were compact, in successively smaller formats (8 inch, then 51/4 inch, then 31/2 inch, for example) while achieving high capacity storage, now well into the gigabyte range. Host computers and disk drive controllers also were designed to operate different disk drives in interrelated fashion on data to be stored, such as by employing disk striping to distribute a data block among a number of disk drives. Data distribution was used to substantially increase data transfer rates, and also to facilitate error correction, using redundancy to improve reliability. These developments also led to the introduction of a number of variants which became referred to as RAID technology, which now encompasses tape drives as well as hard disk drives. Among the features adopted were the use of exchanges of spare drives for defective drives, and the mounting of disk drives and other peripherals in plug-in cassettes, canisters or trays of different configurations. These allowed the peripherals to be inserted into and retained in the enclosure and enabled completion of electrical power and data transfer connections. Also, the peripherals could then be removed, often in a "hot swapping" approach that precluded the need for shutdown.
There are now many different types of enclosures for removable computer peripheral devices, including particularly hard disk drives, in RAID and non-RAID arrays. In addition, a number of adapter systems are available that are employable with a standard computer port or receptacle (now typically 51/4 inches or 31/2 inches) to enable a smaller sized peripheral within a cassette or canister to be removably inserted. These and other units incorporate local controllers, power supplies and interconnects for the different computer peripheral devices.
However, as the array systems and structures have become available in larger volume, system requirements have come into conflict with demands for greater versatility in use along with customer insistence on reduced cost. Current demands are for enclosures which can incorporate different sizes of disk drives, so as to accommodate different storage capacities or different device preferences. In 31/2 inch drives, for example, higher capacity units are taller (e.g., 15/8 inches) than lower capacity (e.g., 1 inch high) units, even though both fit within a port or bay designed for a 31/2 inch drive. An enclosure should therefore preferably accommodate an integral number of whatever height drive is to be used, or even allow a mix to be employed. Another respect in which the enclosure should be adaptable relates to the different types of bus interconnections that may have to be made. The host I/O connection can be any of a number of different types, and the local bus peripheral bus interconnections can also be of one of many different types, such as SCSI, IDE, and PCI. There is also growing adoption of a connection approach known as SCA (Single Connector Attachment). It is therefore desirable to have available an arrangement in which only a backplane need be interchanged if different buses are to be used. The multiple pin mating connectors and cables used with different buses also should be readily changeable for different configurations. When configurations change, the user interface (display and controls) should likewise be changed to be compatible.
The system should also include, for low cost and reliability, a capability for using standard subsystems, such as power supplies, batteries and fans in the different configurations. Installation and removal of peripherals and subsystems should be easy to accomplish manually. Adequate cooling must be provided no matter what configuration of peripherals and subsystem is used. Also, the system, no matter which arrangement is adopted, should have a modern, aesthetically pleasing, appearance.